Norine MacDonald QC
President and Founder
Norine MacDonald KC is President and Founder of RAIN Defense + AI.
She was formerly President and Founder of The International Council on Security and Development (ICOS), an international security and development, a think tank founded in 2002 with offices in Kabul, London, Rio de Janeiro, Brussels and Paris, and field offices in the Afghan cities of Lashkar Gah and Kandahar City.
Ms MacDonald is Former Visiting Distinguished Fellow at National Defense University. Her research focus is on issues related to the intersection of Artificial Intelligence and the defense and intelligence sector. Specific research interests include mapping the Artificial Intelligence for defense and intelligence innovation ecosystem, with a view to providing policy insight for decision makers, as well as global mapping of this sector. In 2020 MacDonald authored, ‘Killing Me Softly: Competition in Artificial Intelligence and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles‘ with George Howell.
She graduated from Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan School of Management in Artificial Intelligence: Implications for Business Strategy in September 2020.
In 2018 MacDonald was awarded the US Department of the Army Decoration for Distinguished Civilian Service and also in 2018, she received the Distinguished Public Service Medal for exceptional service to the United States Army.
George Howell
Director of RAIN+ RESEARCH
George Howell is Director of RAIN+ RESEARCH. He is a Development Studies and Innovation Management specialist, on both geopolitical and urban security challenges, with more than ten years of experience in the security and defense policy environment.
Dr Jorrit Kamminga
Director of RAIN+ ETHICS
Jorrit Kamminga is Director of RAIN+ ETHICS Global Observatory on AI Ethics & Governance in the Security Sector. He is also a Senior Research Associate at the Clingendael Institute. Dr Kamminga brings two decades of experience working on the nexus between security and development, with a special focus on Afghanistan and Colombia. He holds a Ph.D. in International Relations from the University of Valencia, Spain.
Emmanuel Reinert
Business Advisor
Emmanuel Reinert is Business Advisor to
RAIN+ Research Group, supporting the strategic development of the organisation. Emmanuel has many years of leadership in a range of fields including corporate business development, security, defense and intelligence.
Rutger Veltman
Analyst
Rutger Veltman is Analyst for the RAIN+ ETHICS and RAIN+ RESEARCH divisions. He brings extensive research experience, with a special focus on drone warfare, security and international relations. He holds an MA Modern Middle Eastern Studies (Distinction), a BA Modern Middle Eastern Studies and a BSc International Relations from Leiden University.
Matthew Wilcox
Media and Communications Lead
Matthew Wilcox is Media and Communications Lead at RAIN+ NEWS. Having previously worked in public relations for a major international auction house, he also has more than ten years’ experience as a freelance journalist and editor focusing on, amongst other things, technology, art, culture and travel.
